Shariah (Islamic Law)

Stephanie Sinclair for The New York Time

News about Shariah (Islamic Law), including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Mar. 23, 2015

Saudi Arabia's justice system, object of global criticism for its opaqueness and cruelty, has series of internal checks and paths to mercy that remain poorly understood by outside world; while some punishments like beheading for murder are mandated under centuries-old Shariah law, judges enjoy significant autonomy to grant clemency for many crimes that are not so strictly defined. MORE

Mar. 19, 2015

Memo From Mecca; Islamic scholars and researchers meeting in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for Islam and Countering Terrorism conference recommend imposition of Islamic Shariah law as means of countering terrorist groups like Islamic State; participants fail to acknowledge role of Saudi monarchy and its brand of strict religious observance in giving rise to extremism. MORE

Jan. 19, 2015

Police in Mecca arrest man who made video of beheading of woman convicted of murder; authorities plan to prosecute man under Saudi Arabia's cybercrimes law; video, which has been posted online and distributed by human rights organizations, draws attention to country's harsh system of justice under Shariah law. MORE

Aug. 26, 2014

Abubakar Shekau, leader of the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, appears on Nigerian video saying his fighters are now ruling the northeastern city of Gwoza 'by Islamic law.' MORE

Jul. 31, 2014

Sunni extremists with Islamic State in Iraq and Syria have destroyed or plan to destroy historic sites of Mosul's rich cultural history, deeming them heretical under Islamic law; angry public reaction of Iraqi city's residents, however, appears to be the first spark of rebellion against harsh Islamic rule. MORE

Jul. 24, 2014

Militants of Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, long before rolling through Iraq, took over most of Syria's Raqqa Province, home to about a million people, establishing capital city Raqqa as its headquarters; through strategic management and brute force, group has begun imposing its vision of state that blends its fundamentalist interpretation of Islam with practicalities of governance. MORE

Jul. 8, 2014

India's Supreme Court rules that Shariah courts have no legal status and are not legally binding. MORE

May. 22, 2014

Six young Iranians are released on bail after their arrest for posting a YouTube video of themselves dancing on Tehran rooftops to Happy, the globally infectious pop song; episode appears to reflect clash between Iran's religious conservatives and faction represented by Pres Hassan Rouhani, relatively moderate cleric who was elected on pledges to ease some restraints in Iran, including censorship of the Internet. MORE

May. 8, 2014

Indonesian woman who was gang-raped by men who accused her of having extramarital sex may be caned publicly for violating Islamic law. MORE

May. 6, 2014

Charities pull their fund-raisers from the Beverly Hills Hotel amid uproar over the adoption of Shariah law by the sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, whose investment group owns the property; cancellations follow moves by others to shun the hotel and other Dorchester Collection properties. MORE

Mar. 31, 2014

Mohammad Ali and Zakia, young Afghan couple from differing Tajik and Hazara ethic groups, are facing threats of arrest or even death after eloping; case reflects conflict between Shariah or Islamic law and civil law. MORE

Feb. 1, 2013

Residents of Timbuktu, Mali, tell of terror they endured for nearly 10 months under harsh Shariah law put in place by Islamic militants, until city was liberated by French and Malian troops; rebels, many linked with Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, destroyed tombs of venerated saints and carried out floggings, amputations and executions during reign; while the Islamist militants have retreated to the desert, however, there are no illusions that they have ceased to be a threat. MORE

Jan. 24, 2013

Prof Karima Bennoune Op-Ed article deplores oppressive presence of fundamentalist, Shariah-based Islam in northern Mali; supports foreign intervention in crisis, noting efforts by France, but urges caution against forcing problem out of Mali only to have it emerge elsewhere in region. MORE

Jan. 15, 2013

Plan by officials in Lhokseumawe, Indonesia, where Islamic law governs, to ban women from straddling motorbikes has prompted outcry from critics, who say local leaders are infringing on women's safety and freedom in name of religion. MORE

Dec. 28, 2012

Islamist takeover of northern Mali in spring 2012 has resulted in harsh application of Shariah law, in which people accused of being thieves sometimes have their hands and even feet cut off; Human Rights Watch reports that amputations have occurred at least 14 times since takeover; United Nations Security Council has authorized military campaign to retake region. MORE

Dec. 8, 2012

Afghan officials say man who tried to kill intelligence chief Asadullah Khalid might have eluded detection because he hid bomb in his groin and searching genital area violates Shariah law. MORE

Nov. 10, 2012

Thousands of Egypt's ultraconservative Salafis protest in Cairo, angry that country's draft constitution does not go far enough to enshrine Islamic law. MORE

Oct. 6, 2012

Four Malaysians born male seek to overturn law punishing them for dressing as women; group of transgender people, tired of living in fear, argue Shariah, or Islamic law, violates the Constitution, which bans discrimination on gender and protects freedom of expression. MORE

Sep. 11, 2012

Radical Islamists in control of northern Mall continue to enforce harsh Shariah law, and amputate hands and feet of four robbery suspects; stringent punishments are carried out amid heightened confusion about who is in charge of Mali's government, how to confront the Islamists in the north and the status of the disintegrating Malian Army. MORE

Aug. 10, 2012

Islamists controlling northern Mali publicly amputate the hand of a man they accused of robbery, continuing an increasingly harsh application of what the vast region's new masters consider sacred law. MORE

Aug. 2, 2012

Woman convicted of adultery is sentenced to death by stoning in Sudan; Sudan's Pres Omar Hassan al-Bashir said in July that the country will adopt 100 percent Islamic constitution, prompting concerns that the country would apply Islamic law more strictly. MORE

Jul. 31, 2012

Islamists in control of a town in northern Mali stone a couple to death after accusing them of having children outside of marriage; stoning is the Islamists’ most brutal reported act of repression so far; refugees from the north have given numerous accounts of public whippings and beatings for alleged violations of Shariah law in the main towns of Timbuktu and Gao. MORE

Jul. 3, 2012

Islamists, after a coup in Mali, have taken control of Timbuktu, one of Africa’s most historic cities, smashing the wooden door of an old mosque and continuing a campaign of destruction of religious monuments that has drawn condemnation from the United Nations and the International Criminal Court; group is calling for imposition of Shariah law. MORE

Jun. 3, 2012

Rebels who captured Timbuktu in northern Mali have imposed strict Islamic rule, prompting many residents to flee in fear and changing the face of what had been a tolerant and easygoing destination that drew tourists from around the world; the look of the ancient mud-brick town is changing, as signs with Koranic messages replace advertisements, music is banned and women are forced to wear full veils. MORE

May. 30, 2012

Agreement between a separatist Tuareg rebel group and the Islamist group Ansar Dine to create an Islamic state in northern Mali hits a snag over how strictly to impose Islamic law. MORE

May. 26, 2012

Kansas Gov Sam Brownback signs law intended to prevent state's courts or agencies from basing decisions on foreign legal codes, which is likely to face a court challenge from Muslim groups; although Shariah, which refers broadly to codes within the Islamic legal system, is not specifically mentioned in the law, many of the law's supporters have worried specifically about its potential influence on court decisions. MORE

May. 18, 2012

Kuwait’s emir, Sheik Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, blocks a proposal by 31 of the 50 elected members of Parliament to amend the Constitution to make all legislation in the country comply with Islamic law. MORE

Apr. 5, 2012

Islamist rebel faction that seized control of the northern city of Timbuktu in Mali says it will impose Islamic law there. MORE

Mar. 27, 2012

Tunisia's ruling Islamist party Ennahda says country's post-revolution constitution will not mention Islamic law as a source of legislation, signaling a forceful break with ultraconservatives who have been demanding an Islamic state. MORE

Jan. 11, 2012

Federal appeals court blocks implementation of an 2010 amendment adopted by Oklahoma that would bar state courts from considering Shariah, or Islamic, law in any proceedings. MORE

Dec. 22, 2011

Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, long before announcing his bid, was the most prominent American politician to describe Shariah, or Islamic Law, as a major threat to the United States; Gingrich's arguments are in vogue with some conservatives but are roundly rejected by American Muslims, scholars of Islam and counterterrorism officials. MORE

Dec. 4, 2011

Unexpected electoral success of Egypt's ultra-conservative Islamist group known as Salafis, who insist on strict application of Shariah law rather than broad principles advocated by Muslim Brotherhood, is terrifying Egyptian liberals and troubling West; group's new clout is also presenting challenge to Muslim Brotherhood, plunging the country into an Islamist-against-Islamist debate over religion's role in a promised democracy. MORE

Oct. 30, 2011

Libya's interim government seems to clear way for unrestricted polygamy in Muslim country where it has been limited for decades; multiple marriages is a tenet of Islamic law. MORE

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The state-sanctioned conference, called “Islam and Countering Terrorism,” was an effort by the Saudi government to burnish its anti-extremist credentials and promote its religious establishment as an alternative to the savage leadership...

Mali has been in turmoil since 2012, as events there and in Algeria, raised the possibility of drawing an increasing number of foreign countries into direct involvement. Below, a timeline of the two crises.